Industry Moves

Rubies announces raft of new hires as business expands

Rubies has announced several new appointments as it continues to experience unprecedented growth and demand.

Peter Silver

Peter Silver has joined the costume company as the new head of Sales, moving from Mattel, where he was senior national account manager. He also previously worked as a national account manager at Warner Bros. and brings a wealth of knowledge in selling and negotiation skills, forecasting and strategic planning. Reporting directly to Rubies’ commercial director for UK, Central, Eastern and Northern Europe, Graham Gardiner, Peter will be responsible for managing and overseeing the UK sales operation and will be a pivotal force in helping the company achieve and exceed its ambitious growth plans.

Commenting on Peter’s appointment, Graham said: “As the business continues to go from strength to strength and grows to new levels, we are excited to be bringing in a new, valuable senior team member to our account management and sales team. Peter has come from a very distinguished background within the industry and has years of experience in his respective fields. With his in-depth knowledge of every aspect of the retail and toy markets, I have no doubt he will be a perfect fit for the team.”

With almost three years’ experience in his previous role at Hornby as senior national account manager and previously holding positions including senior account manager at Kids II and Mattel, new national account controller Robin Dent brings extensive experience of all facets of account management to the job.

Robin Dent

Robin will manage the day-to-day relationship with national accounts, while simultaneously focusing on the company’s growth and expansion, aligning with Rubies’ 365 business plan.

Claire Barkwith has also joined Rubies as new national account manager for Fashion and Apparel, responsible for managing and growing Rubies national accounts including major retailers such as Sainsbury’s, George at Asda, Dunnes, Matalan and Morrisons.

Claire Barkwith

She has worked in the apparel and textile industry for over 16 years with the majority of high street retailers and supermarkets. As part of her career, she has specialised in design, pattern cutting and sourcing in the Far East and Europe and her experience and knowledge will be a key asset in supporting growth in the Apparel and Fashion channel.

Glynn Davies joins Heathside in new wholesale and distributor sales role

Glynn Davies

Glynn Davies brings his extensive toy sales experience and knowledge of the pop culture sector to his new role at Heathside Trading. Glynn said: “I’m happy to share that I’ve started a new position in wholesale and distributor sales with Heathside Trading, working on some great brands and properties from across the entertainment and pop culture world.”

Glynn has an impressive background in the toy industry. Before taking up his new role, he was sales director and global head of sales at Eaglemoss, which specialised in pop culture models, collectibles, build kits and more. His CV also includes Warner Bros., where Glynn was executive category licensing director (EMEA), Toys & Publishing, and The Lego Group, where he held the role of director, Global Co-Promotions and Promotional Licensing. John Nelson, Heathside CEO, commented: ”Having worked with Glynn for many years when he was with Eaglemoss, and prior to that with Warner Brothers, he seemed an ideal fit for our business when it comes to expanding our retail partnerships and European distributor business. We have many pop culture licences which enhance our portfolio of properties and believe Glynn will be able to service these customers with confidence.” Heathside currently works with properties such as Among Us, Sonic, My Hero Academia, Minecraft, Yu-Gi-Oh! and Five Nights at Freddy’s.

This year, the company has also signed a number of new deals which have further bolstered the Heathside’s portfolio. In March, it announced a worldwide licensing deal for the Destination brand of board games from Rachel Lowe, and in May inked a long-term licensing and distribution deal which sees it now offer Chameleon patented Blendypen branded products to customers. Prior to these deals, Heathside kicked off the year by being named as exclusive distributor for Just Toys‘ full range of toys and collectibles in the UK and Ireland.